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MAXWELTON, W.Va. (AP) — A clinic that serves veterans in West Virginia and Virginia has closed again because of air quality issues.
The Beckley VA Medical Center announced the indefinite closure of the Greenbrier County Community Based Outpatient Clinic in Maxwelton on Monday, media outlets reported. Veterans served by the clinic will have to travel to the hospital in Beckley, about 53 miles west of Maxwelton, for health care services.
Hospital director Karin McGraw said air quality tests found formaldehyde levels above the recommended exposure limit in several parts of the clinic. Several employees have continued to report air quality issues.
"The safety and health of the Veterans, their families, and our staff remain our foremost concern. The Beckley VAMC is committed to the Veterans served at the Greenbrier County CBOC and will explore all options available to determine a viable and speedy resolution. Information will be shared as the process unfolds," McGraw said in a hospital news release.
Eligible veterans who received reimbursement for mileage to and from the clinic will be reimbursed for mileage to and from the hospital.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs initially closed the clinic in June 2014 after several employees became ill. The clinic later reopened but closed again in October 2014 after similar problems were reported. The VA clinic began operations in 2011.
The building is owned by the Greenbrier Valley Economic Development Corporation. Beckley VA Medical Center spokeswoman Debbie Voloski said the development group modified the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system to achieve acceptable air flow, pressurization, and temperature and humidity levels.
The clinic serves about 2,400 veterans in Greenbrier, Monroe, Pocahontas and Summers counties in West Virginia, and in Alleghany County, Virginia.
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